Christmas Eve!

 

The annual pajama opening!

 

It's Almost Feeling A Lot Like Christmas

Lots of Christmas Happenings.

Filled with grief at Matt's passing last year, I was not in the mood to celebrate Christmas at all last year. The girls wanted to do Christmas baking last year, so we did a little, but not much. This year, while still living in grief, we went all in on baking, on eating all the different treats, and at celebrating. This is about half of the goodie plates we made and delivered this year. Oh, and Audra is home!!!

We went to see Studio C which was fantastic! We love their comedy sketch show, and the original cast came into town which was fabulous! Claire couldn't go because of basketball, sadly.

They did a Harry Potter/Wicked skit that was incredible. I mean, simply incredible! 

We will definitely buy tickets  for their show every time they are in town! Such an awesome night!

Sans Ben, we went and watched Wicked: For Good. I LOVED the movie!

Audra, Ben, and I went to the Ricks' annual sing along which was wonderful! Ben admitted it is the must-do event of the year.

And then to look at Christmas lights. Of course, the famous gingerbread house, but then we also found a new gem- the Candy Cane House. I think it's my new favorite.

We saw one with Little Debbie blow ups, so Claire insisted on getting a picture of me in them. I thought that was really sweet as we remembered Matt's favorite treat.

Got some frozen hot chocolate from Twisted Sugar- this was really yummy!

And the Twisted Sugar and Crumbl holiday flavors:

On Christmas Eve Day it was 72 degrees so we went on a short hike. 

It's a lovely Florida December.

Now on to the final celebrations!

Pueblo- WHAT?

 On Thursday at 8 AM Claire and I got a text from the varsity coach: "Is there any way that Claire can join us in Pueblo for the tournament? We have sickness and injuries and we need her. We leave today at noon."

Of course, Claire wanted to go- but she  also had two finals and a concert. I told her I could take her on Friday if she couldn't figure out how to make it work to go on Thursday, but of course she really wanted to do on Thursday. She was somehow able to make it work and off she went to Pueblo.

I drove down on Saturday to watch their game. She played quite a bit, and she played well, She wasn't a huge impact player, but she didn't hurt the team- and really, that's what you need in a substitute, someone who can relieve your starters and not lose ground. So I was really proud of her, and so was she. She had a great time with the team and it was a very positive experience for her overall.

And, because we were there, we stopped at the oldest pizzeria in Colorado- opened in 1945! The pizza was delicious and a fun stop on our way home.

 

She's in there somewhere! She played about 15 minutes, which is quite a bit. Go, Claire!

Thankfully, we made it home just in time to go to Camille's piano concert. She had her piece memorized and knows the piece backwards and forwards, but unfortunately it was a tough recital. She didn't play as well as she hoped. But, I was very proud of her for persevering and continuing on. It shows great courage to get up in front of everyone and continue through struggles.

Camille really is pretty amazing, and she showed it today.

So Proud!

 Audra texted me this message. Like mother, like daughter! My mom still teases me for bringing home dirty clothes from college ;)

Random Notes

Isn't Camille the cutest? I just thought she looked especially cute and had to get a picture.

And, a Christmas concert for Claire. We thought last year's would be our last, but Claire decided to do orchestra again which is awesome.

And, Claire got to play in a varsity basketball game! Only for a few seconds, but she was in heaven. She loves being on varsity, even if she isn't playing a lot. She still gets her name called at the beginning of the game with the roster, gets to sit on the bench, practice with varsity- she is very happy with her current situation. 

One Year

 Today is the one year anniversary of Matt's passing. I remember everything about that awful day, and I think about him every day. I miss him and can't believe he isn't here anymore to give me any of his big bear hugs.

Ilea said he loved Little Debbie's and would often get them to eat for midnight snacks or to eat at work. This may have helped contribute to his heart attack, but regardless- Camille and I stopped by the grocery store and grabbed some Little Debbie's after her basketball game in honor of him.

It was a hard day to get through. Thankfully I had work and Camille's basketball game to keep me busy. It really just sucks that he's gone.

She's #15, shooting some free throws:

People on-line were raving about the Christmas Tree Cakes from Little Debbie. I am not a fan. I will avoid them in future Matthew honorings!

Thanksgiving!

I think going to Disneyland when we did was perfect- it may need to be a new tradition. We were able to go do Disneyland, but get back in plenty of time for Thanksgiving. We made our jell-o, pies (4 this year- chocolate, cherry. lemon meringue- Camille's favorite, and pumpkin- Ben's favorite), and rolls. Of course, we watched the Macy's Parade and looked for the Great American Marching Band! Audra saw her friend Jackson on TV, so that was fun!

We went to Mac and Ann's for a wonderful dinner and time with family. It was a great day! Audra didn't get to stay for the weekend as she had to head back to Utah for the football game on Saturday, but it was wonderful to have her home while we had her.